Amendment of section 278.
105. In section 278 of the Income-tax Act, with effect from the 1st day of July, 2012,––
(a) in clause (i), for the words “one hundred thousand rupees”, the words “twenty-five hundred thousand rupees” shall be substituted;
(b) in clause (ii), for the words “three years”, the words “two years” shall be substituted.
Notes on Clauses:
Clause 105 of the Bill seeks to amend section 278 of the Income-tax Act relating to abetment of false return, etc.
The existing provisions of the aforesaid section 278 provide that if any person abets or induces in any manner another person to make and deliver an account or make a statement or declaration relating to any income or any fringe benefit chargeable to tax which is false and which he either knows to be false or does not believe to be true or to commit an offence under sub-section (1) of section 276C, he shall be punishable in a case where the amount of tax, penalty or interest which would have been evaded if the declaration, account or statement had been accepted as true, or which is wilfully attempted to be evaded, exceeds one hundred thousand rupees, with rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than six months but which may extend to seven years and with fine; and in any other case, with rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than three months but which may extend to three years and with fine.
It is proposed to amend the aforesaid section so as to increase the limit of amount of tax, penalty or interest which would have been evaded from one hundred thousand rupees to twenty-five hundred thousand rupees and to reduce the maximum imprisonment from three years to two years. These amendments will take effect from 1st July, 2012.
